Armadale, West Main Street, The Goth · Category C listed · Photo: G Laird · CC BY-SA 2.0
Armadale’s story
Armadale in pictures
Historic Environment Scotland lists 2 buildings inside Armadale’s locality.
Explore the history →
ArmadaleWest Lothian
Council tax at Band D comes to £1,628. 12,590 people call this town in West Lothian, Scotland home.
7 places within 12 milesMap →
Photo: Dr John Wells CC-BY West Lothian Archaeology · CC BY 3.0
Population
12,590
Census 2022 · West Lothian council
Median home
£191K
541 sales in 3 years
Median age
40.4
16% are 65+ · West Lothian 17%
Degree level
22%
of residents 16+ · Scotland 32%
Walk, cycle, bus
17%
of commuters · Scotland 27%
Is Armadale a good place to live?
Homes are affordable (A): homes sell for a median £190,800, about 4 times local household income. It is strong on schools as well — school leavers’ results beat 91% of Scottish towns. Where it falls short is health — men here can expect to live to 76.3, women to 80.9. Hazard risk is lower than in most UK towns (A).
Figures: prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · life expectancy, ONS · flood risk, SEPA. Without street-level crime figures from Police Scotland, Armadale has no Safety Grade, and so no overall grade. The other subjects are graded below.
What makes Armadale stand out
The 3 things Armadale does most differently from other towns.
Band D council tax
Council tax
£1,628 Band D
34% below the typical town in England and Wales’s £2,472, 2026–27
The council’s Band D; water and sewerage are billed on top. Scottish Government.
Secondary results, Scottish towns
Schools
Secondary results beat 91%
Scottish Government, secondaries in or within 3 km.
Degree level, 16+
Education
Degree-level qualifications, residents 16+ (Scotland’s towns 32%)
West Lothian 28%.
How Armadale grades
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within Scotland), ordered by how far Armadale is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Without street-level crime figures from Police Scotland, Armadale has no Safety Grade, and so no overall grade. The other subjects are graded below.
Cost of livingIn the top fifth of the towns comparedAOpen →HealthBased on how healthy residents are for their agesDOpen →SchoolsSchools rank among the strongest comparedAOpen →Hazard risk0% of homes at high or medium risk of flooding from rivers or the seaAOpen →WalkabilityAbove the middle of the towns comparedB+Open →
SafetyNo street-level crime data–
Jobs & incomeNo small-area income data in Scotland–
How TownRatings grades towns →
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Armadale.
HousingCost of living grade A
Few households rent privately in Armadale: 7%, fewer than in West Lothian’s towns and Scotland’s towns
Private rents average £908 a month across the West Lothian council area. 541 sales in Armadale’s data zones from 2023 to 2025 make up the median of £190,800. Social housing holds 27% of households, above West Lothian’s towns (25%) and Scotland’s towns (24%) alike.
£191Kmedian sale
Median sale price · 2023 to 2025, at early-2025 prices
Armadale£191K
Typical UK town£277K
63%
of households own their home · Scotland 60%
7%
rent privately · Scotland 13%
£908
average private rent a month, West Lothian council area
£1,628
council tax, Band D, 2026–27
Registers of Scotland data-zone sale prices · Scottish Government council tax · Scotland’s Census 2022 tenure · OGL · The Scottish median is our estimate from data-zone sales, brought to early-2025 prices.
SchoolsA
Armadale gets an A for
Of its 5 schools, two are shown below, each with the reason. Armadale Academy’s results beat 82% of schools in Scotland like it. Some 2,219 pupils attend the town’s four primaries and one secondary.
ASchool Grade
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Armadale Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 290 | – |
| Armadale AcademyLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 1,192 | A− |
Scottish Government · school statistics and leavers’ results · The grade uses the secondaries its children go to; Scotland publishes no primary results by school.See all 5 schools →
Health
People in Armadale live shorter lives than in 89% of UK towns
At the census, 7.4% of residents said their health was bad or very bad, above West Lothian’s towns (7%) and close to Scotland’s towns (7.2%). 78% of Armadale’s residents described their health as good or very good in 2022, against 79% across West Lothian’s towns.
78%good or very good healthDHealth Grade
General health, self-reported
Good or very good 78%Fair 14%Bad or very bad 7%
| Census 2022 | Armadale | West Lothian | Scotland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 78% | 79% | 78% |
| Bad or very bad health | 7.4% | 7% | 7.2% |
| Activities limited (health or disability) | 24% | 24% | 24% |
76.3
life expectancy at birth, men (2020–24)
80.9
life expectancy at birth, women
Scotland’s Census 2022, general health and disability · Public Health Scotland life expectancy by intermediate zone, 2020–24 · OGL · These shares come straight from the census, without allowing for age, and young towns benefit; the Health Grade instead weighs age-adjusted measures, including life expectancy and early deaths.
Who lives here
Fewer people in Armadale hold a degree than in West Lothian’s towns or Scotland’s towns: 22%
16% of residents are 65 or over, below both West Lothian’s towns (17%) and Scotland’s towns (19%). Under 15: 19% of residents. Armadale has a median age of 40.4.
40.4median age
ArmadaleWest LothianScotland
Ages · share of residents
11%
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications17%
Apprenticeship9%
Highers or similar12%
Degree level22%
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About 95 men for every 100 women. Across Scotland, 51% of residents are women.
| Armadale | West Lothian | Scotland | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 19% | 18% | 15% |
| 15–24 | 11% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 27% | 26% | 26% |
| 45–64 | 28% | 29% | 27% |
| 65+ | 16% | 17% | 19% |
| No qualifications | 17% | 16% | 17% |
| Apprenticeship | 9% | 7.3% | 7.5% |
| Highers or similar | 12% | 11% | 11% |
| Degree level | 22% | 28% | 32% |
Scotland’s Census 2022 · West Lothian and Scotland: all residents of their towns · OGL
Work & commute
Only 17% of commuters in Armadale go to work without a car, fewer than in West Lothian’s towns and Scotland’s towns
Scotland’s Census was taken on 20 March 2022, a year after England and Wales’s lockdown census; 31% of workers were mainly at home, and shares here are of those who travelled.
For every resident in work, Armadale has 0.3 jobs. The car took 82% of commuters, higher than both West Lothian’s towns (78%) and Scotland’s towns (70%). A quarter of commuters travelled under 5 km to work. Work in town: nearly a tenth of resident commuters.
17%walk, cycle or ride
How commuters got to work · March 2022
Driving82%
Bus7%
On foot5%
Train4%
Bicycle1%
25%
of commuters travel under 5 km · Scotland 44%
31%
worked mainly from home in March 2022
2.7%
of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits (2026)
B+
Walkability: more walkable than 65% of UK towns
Scotland’s Census 2022 (NRS), method of travel and distance to work · DWP claimant count · OGL
History
All 2 of Armadale’s listed buildings are Category C
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Inside Armadale’s locality, Historic Environment Scotland lists 2 listed buildings, .
2listed buildings
Listed buildings by grade · Historic Environment Scotland
Category A0
Category B0
Category C2
0
scheduled monuments
0
gardens and designed landscapes
2
listed buildings per 10,000 residents · typical town in England and Wales 24
Historic Environment Scotland list, October 2026 · OGL
Nearby attractions
All attractions →Cairnpapple Hill and 5 more in and around Armadale
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Armadale. Best known first.
Historic siteHistoric site · Historic Environment ScotlandCairnpapple Hill4.8 km outside town, to the northeastMuseumMuseumBennie Museum2.4 km outside town, to the eastMuseumMuseumWhitburn Community Museum1.9 km outside town, to the southZooZooScottish Owl Centre2.3 km outside town, to the southMuseumMuseumBlackridge Museum2.9 km outside town, to the westHistoric siteHistoric siteDardanelles2.4 km outside town, to the south
Places: © OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Armadale
14pages on Armadale
The big questions
SafetyNot graded · 16% live in Scotland’s most crime-deprived fifthCost of livingAMedian home £191K · rent £908 a monthSchoolsA5 state schoolsHealthDLife expectancy 76.3 (men), 80.9 (women)Work & commute50% of working residents work in the townFlood & hazardsA0% of homes at high or medium flood risk
Out and about
Famous people from Armadale
17 notable people were born in Armadale.
A
Alex HamiltonScottish footballer (1936–1990)J
Jerry KerrFootballer (1912-1999)W
Willie PollandScottish footballer (1934-2010)Photo credits
William Angus: Jim Mcnulty, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Tom Hanlin: Jacket design by Martin Herbstman, Public domain · Edward Blades: Edinburgh Mathematical Society, Public domain
Armadale’s neighbours
The nearest towns and villages, from National Records of Scotland’s 2022 localities. See them on the map →
WhitburnBathgateHarthillBlackburnFauldhouseMaddistonWest CalderArmadale
How the neighbours grade
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Armadale | 12,590 | — | — | A | — | D |
| Whitburn | 11,772 | 2.3 | — | A+ | — | D− |
| Bathgate | 22,229 | 2.4 | — | A+ | — | C− |
| Harthill | 2,613 | 3.2 | — | A+ | — | D− |
| Blackburn | 5,263 | 3.3 | — | A | — | D− |
| Fauldhouse | 4,587 | 4.7 | — | A+ | — | D− |
| Maddiston | 3,835 | 5.3 | — | B | — | C− |
| West Calder | 3,405 | 5.9 | — | A | — | D |
No Scottish town has a Safety Grade or an overall grade yet: Police Scotland doesn’t publish street-level crime. People: Census 2022. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Armadale
Are schools in Armadale good?
GCSE results beat 91% of towns in England (Department for Education, Attainment 8).
How much is council tax in Armadale?
Band D council tax in Armadale is £1,628 for 2026–27, less than in 94% of UK towns (council, county, police and fire). Your own bill depends on your home’s band; check it on GOV.UK.
Is Armadale expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £190,800, against £277,000 in the typical town in England and Wales. On cost of living it is the 133rd most affordable of 296 Scottish towns.
About Armadale
Town in West Lothian, Scotland
Armadale is a locality of 12,590 people, in the West Lothian council area. TownRatings uses National Records of Scotland’s 2022 localities as Scotland’s towns: the physical town, as people mean the word, rather than a council area, so its figures cover the town itself. Localities split the big settlements into their towns, as ONS’s 2022 boundaries split conurbations in England and Wales.
Built from NRS geography and Census 2022
- Population
- 12,590 (Census 2022)
- Council
- West Lothian
- Nation
- Scotland
- Area
- 1.1 sq mi (3 km²)
- NRS code
- S52000028
Sources: Scotland’s Census 2022 (National Records of Scotland), output areas summed to the NRS 2022 locality · Registers of Scotland house price statistics, medians and quartiles of residential sales by 2022 data zone, 2004 to 2025 (the 2023 to 2025 headline brought to early-2025 prices with each council’s medians) · Scottish Government, Council Tax by band 2026-27; Scottish Water charges 2026-27 · Scottish Government, Recorded Crime in Scotland (crimes, offences and clear-up rates by council area, 2016-17 to 2025-26); Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation 2020v2 crime domain and SIMD crime indicators (2014/15, 2017/18), 2011 data zones with Census 2022 residents · ONS gross disposable household income by council (2022), scaled to household income on England and Wales’s councils, with Scotland’s Census 2022 households · DWP / ONS Claimant Count via Nomis (2022 data zones, January to August 2026), over residents aged 16 to 64 at Scotland’s Census 2022; council series since 2015 · Scottish Government school contact list (31 July 2026) and school summary statistics (pupil census, September 2025); School Information Dashboard leavers’ attainment by school, 2022-23 to 2024-25 (data.gov.scot) · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranked against UK towns only. All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.